A review by kali
The Wicked Cometh by Laura Carlin

4.0

I couldn't help making comparisons with Fingersmith by Sarah Waters, which is rather unfair to this novel. It is set in the 1830s, when the poor were considered 'lesser humans' without purpose in society. The purpose they are put to is quite disturbing and creates some of the more Gothic scenes in this novel. Befitting the genre there are also role reversals, twins separated at birth, and questions over parentage. The language is wonderfully evocative, though occasionally a little florid.